Press Release, Dec. 1, 2010
For 25 years, island resident John Warner has been working in the retail jewelry business. John has recently opened up an online shopping website www.jjfashiontrends.com. His goal is to be your favorite supplier of freshwater cultured pearls, sterling silver and fashion jewelry for men and women. "The product lines I have put together are unparalleled, offering a wide selection of the highest quality merchandise from over 60 manufacturers around the world as well as our own unique designs available exclusively from JJFashionTrends." Check out John's website for your holiday shopping needs.

Betty Harris Metro Town Center Realty, Inc., 1980 Whitehaven Road, announced this week that her residential real estate company serving WNY, has launched a new website designed to assist home buyers match their lifestyle preferences with a suburb and home that meets those preferences. The site includes profiles on WNY suburbs, general in-depth information and links concerning home ownership and living in the suburbs, and up to date listings. The informational assistance is free to anyone visiting the website, and does not require registration or a log in. The new website is located at www.wnysuburbanhomes.com . Betty Harris Metro Town Center Realty also maintains an informative website at www.bettyharristowncenterrealty.com.
Town Center Realty President Betty L. Harris said, “In these difficult economic times, home ownership remains the American dream and the suburban residential housing market in Western New York remains both strong and attractive. We want our new website to be the go-to real estate resource for anyone looking to take advantage of the great values available in the WNY suburban real estate market. Besides the features and information we are currently offering on the www.wnysuburbanhomes.com website, we will be expanding and enhancing it further in the future. The information and assistance will always be free.” Betty Harris Metro Town Center Realty, Inc. is a real estate company serving Erie and Niagara counties as well as other WNY locations. Specializing in residential real estate, the company also offers turnkey corporate relocation and investment real estate services. More information on Betty Harris Metro Town Center Realty is available online at www.bettyharristowncenterrealty.com. Harris concluded, "As a licensed real estate broker, and top producer, since 1980, I am always available for assistance.”
Betty Harris Metro Town Center Realty, Inc. may be reached at (716) 773-1177, (716) 472-3739 (cell), or e-mail inquiry@betterharristowncenterrealty.com
Betty L. Harris is a licensed real estate BROKER and top producer since 1980. She is the owner/BROKER of Betty Harris Town Center Realty, Inc., a part of the METRO system. Betty is the current President of the METRO Association of BROKERS. Betty Harris Town Center Realty is a full service, NYS licensed, residential real estate company serving Erie and Niagara Counties in Western New York. The firm also offers turnkey corporate relocation and investment real estate services. The company’s office is centrally located on Grand Island, NY at 1980 Whitehaven Road.

The Grand Island Lions Club will be offering Christmas Trees at Kelly's Country Store on Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 5 p.m. and also Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 5-9 p.m. Why leave the Island for your tree this year?

Isledegrande.com is ten years old today. It was on October 28, 2000 that publisher Reg Schopp posted the first issue of our online internet newspaper. To look back to that first "paper," see October 28, 2000. For the past ten years we have posted all kinds of Island news and information.
The number of visitors to our front page in the early days certainly surprised us, especially when the count reached a steady 5000 per week. We are presently at between 7000 and 8000 visitors weekly. We are especially proud of how our online paper has brought so many Islanders and former Island residents together. Our readership is not only here in the U.S. but across the world.
Reg Schopp's idea was to give all organizations, clubs, churches as well as the town and school boards, their own web pages to post news and photos. There is no cost for those pages and groups are encouraged to submit their news. We have endless space therefore 99% of the news is posted the week it is submitted. We here at Isledegrande.com (Reg, Teddy, Jodi and Kim) truly appreciate the supportive notes we receive as we work with you through email and to those who have financially supported us through advertising and donations making it possible for us to continue to serve you.

Press Release, Oct. 20, 2010
Located at 1875 Grand Island Boulevard, the Grand Island Central Federal Credit Union was chartered in 1960
when it began serving employees of the Grand Island Central School District. It later expanded to include employees of the
Town of Grand Island, the Grand Island Fire Department, and the Grand Island Chamber of Commerce. Recently, the Credit Union
extended service to anyone that lives on Grand Island.
In the past year, the Credit Union has greatly expanded its services and products while still maintaining the friendly and
personal service its members have come to expect. The Credit Union prides itself on offering higher savings and CD rates than
any other bank on the Island, while still maintaining competitive loan rates with all of Western New York. This is possible
because the credit union is a non-profit organization with no corporate stockholders to satisfy. Our Board of Directors is
made up of volunteers who truly have the member’s best interest at heart. Our staff makes every effort possible to provide
our members with courteous service in a relaxed environment.
We offer new and used auto loans, personal loans, and home equity loans. Auto and personal loans can be approved and
disbursed within 24 hours! We have many ways to save your money as well: Savings and checking accounts, specialty club
accounts, certificate of deposit accounts, and IRAs. We offer convenient direct deposit and payroll deduction, and have
recently added Debit/ATM cards for easier access to your money! We also offer discount tickets to Fantasy Island, Darien
Lake, and Regal Cinemas. Our current rates can be found on our website at www.grandislandcfcu.com, or by calling the office at 773-1707. You can also email any inquiries to
info@grandislandcfcu.com. Stop in to meet our office staff and find out what the Credit Union can do for you! We look
forward to serving you in the future.

Marcia Conover at Canal Fest
Click photo for larger view

www.dogcratecentral.com was established at a
time when there weren't many options in dog crates. Now, Marcia's business sells beautiful hand crafted dog crate furniture,
soft side dog crates, pet gates, pet strollers and more. Because the business does not warehouse their products,
they are able to offer quality products at very reasonable prices. Check out their website to see these high
quality pet items. If placing an order, mention you saw Dog Crate Central on Isledegrande.com, all local orders receive
a 20% discount on all Amish handcrafted wood dog crates and Herb's wood dog crates.

Mallwitz's Island Lanes has been chosen to participate in the nationwide Kids Bowl Free®
program that offers two free games of bowling to children 15 years of age and under for the entire summer!
Parents simply sign their children up for the program online and then they receive weekly emails with the
coupons for the free bowling. There is no cost and no catch! There is also a low cost family pass that can be
purchased for a one time fee so the whole family can bowl free as well. Just go to
www.kidsbowlfree.com for the details and to sign up!

The KeyBank branch located in the Tops Plaza, opened on Monday, May 24th at the corner of Grand Island Blvd. and Whitehaven Rd.
and is offering an iPod touch if you open a checking account with them before July 30, 2010. Branch Manager Jim Philappone is happy to be part of
KeyBank and the Grand Island community. He has ten years experience in the banking business in the Niagara Falls area. A "one stop shop", Jim explained that
KeyBank offers specialists in business, mortgages and private banking. Stop by on Friday, June 11th from 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. and you can get a hot dog cooked
up by McMahon's Family Restaurant along with more information about Grand Island's newest bank. Hours are Monday through Wednesday, 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.;
Thursday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.; Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. and Saturday, 9:00 a.m. - noon.

Top left: Don Benoit in General Store. Top right: General Store
Bottom: Playground area. - Click photos for larger view

After many years of planning and developing, Branches of Niagara Campground & Resort is open. Located at 2659 Whitehaven,
west of the 190, it is a sight to see and you're invited to do so at an open house, planned for Saturday, June 12th from noon - 5:30 p.m.
Tour the 70 acre upscale campground and see the log cabins and general store, playground area complete with climbing wall, lookout,
slides and swings and a volleyball court. The 7 1/2 acre lake is stocked with fish, and canoes and kayaks are available for cruising.
Island resident and partner Larry Stolzenburg says, "this is not your average mom and pop campground". The plan is to make Branches of Niagara
a destination all its own, and is lucky enough to be 5 minutes from Niagara Falls and Buffalo. Don Benoit is a partner and also the brains and brawn
behind the building. He and his crew have constructed the cabins, general store, playground, pavilion, bridge and washrooms, everything! Three of the
four partners are enthusiastic island residents who wanted to give back to the community by investing in the community. Don Benoit stated that they "saw
potential in our home" and acted on it. Opening day was May 21st and the resort was 60% occupied over the Memorial Day weekend. Day passes will be available
Monday - Thursday during season. Come out on June 12th and take a look around, you'll like what you see.

The Grand Island Fun Center located at 2660 Grand Island Blvd. opened for business on Wednesday, May 25th due to the great weather
we are having. Manager Mike Germano has seventeen years experience working at a fun center in Tonawanda, and now brings his expertise to Grand Island.
The Fun Center has go-kart rides, miniature golf, batting cage, and numerous arcade games. A Memorial Day special will give you unlimited golf
and go-karts for $19.95 from 11:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m. on Monday, May 31st. Many group and birthday packages are available to celebrate your special days.
Hours of operation are Monday through Friday, 3:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. and Saturday and Sundays, 11:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m. until school is out. Owner John Walkowiak
purchased the property in 2009.

Left: Sean Kelly in gourmet foods area. Right: Overstock room.

If you haven't stopped by Kelly's Country Store recently, you're in for a treat. Sean Kelly, son of longtime proprietor,
the late Mike Kelly, has added a gourmet foods area and an overstock room to the local landmark. The gourmet foods section
opened just before the Easter shopping season to rave reviews. No need to go over to town to get interesting edibles for home or gifts.
Employee Marilyn Anderson gave a tour of the jams and jellies, spices, salsas, cheeses, teas, soup and dip mixes, just to name a few. Sean noted
the honey roasted sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds are flying off the shelves, along with the specialty olives. An antique icebox in the main
store area now holds milk and juices in glass bottles from the Hoover Dairy in Sanborn, Niagara County. Sean is headed to a huge custom foods
show in New York City at the end of June with plans to bring back many more tasty treats.
Another new addition is an overstock room where prices are 50% off. Sean wants to move out previous season's extra stock to make room
for new specialty items. The overstock room will be open daily until July. A truckload sale is planned for the Memorial Day weekend out in Cambria on Sean's
family property, located at 4232 Cambria-Wilson Road. Five tents will have merchandise marked 75% off and many local families will have tag sales over
the Friday through Monday holiday weekend event. If you can't make Cambria, Kelly's will be having a tent sale over the July 4th weekend at the Grand Island Blvd. store.
Do yourself a favor, stop in and check out the new Kelly's Country Store. Kelly's is open everyday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Homes for Heroes is a national not-for-profit program designed to provide incentives to military, fire and police and other community protectors. Their mission statement is to “provide extraordinary savings to local heroes who provide extraordinary services to our community every day.”
We will be working with Homes for Heroes to insure that our area “heroes” can capture their American dream. They were looking for professional, successful, Realtors who are involved with community support efforts. We were looking for a way to help those who help us. It is the perfect union. For more information, contact me at: (716) 773-1177 or (716) 472-3739. I’ll be posting more information on our website as well. www.bettyharristowncenterrealty.com

Life Technologies hosted a tour of their facility for Grand Island Town and Chamber officials on Monday, March 22nd. The tour consisted of the manufacturing plant, warehouse facility and in the research and development area. Director of Facilities and Engineering for the East Coast, Cynthia Mertz, and Facilities and Engineering Manager for Grand Island, Thomas Saltino, were the guides throughout the tour. The Grand Island Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors would like to thank Sherrie Pufpaff, Executive Assistant, Cells Systems Division of Global Operations, for organizing this event.

Sherry Mongan McDonald, a real estate professional at RealtyUSA.com, was honored at the company’s recent Awards Banquet
as the top sales agent at the Grand Island office. This is Sherry’s fourth consecutive year earning the top sales position at her office.
She was also honored again by being selected as a member of RealtyUSA.com’s President’s Council which is comprised of the company’s
top 100 agents. Sherry has also continued to add to her areas of expertise so that she can provide even more services to her clients.
She has completed her Seniors Real Estate Specialist designation which gives her information specifically aimed at helping our
increasing senior population as their housing needs change. She is also completing her GREEN designation which will allow her
to help clients who are concerned with topics like energy efficiency and natural sources of energy. Sherry would like to remind
everyone that there is still time to take advantage of the Federal Tax credits for home purchases. All purchases must be under
contract by April 30, 2010. Call her today at 716-444-6109 for all the details.

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